engineering consultant for technology and management service firm Energetics. “The quicker people accept it, the better prepared for that situation they’re going to be.” The ball has already started rolling at many school dis-
S
tricts. For example, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) in California, in alignment with Superintendent Alberto Carvalho’s 2022-2026 Strategic Plan, has com- mitted to the complete electrification of its Sun Valley Bus Yard by 2026. The goal is to significantly reduce carbon emissions and promote sustainable student transportation. In today’s numbers, the 180 electric buses and char-
gers along with the necessry infrastructure would be the single largest such purchase and deployment in the nation. The Sun Valley School Bus Yard serves Los Angeles’
San Fernando Valley, transporting 4,600 students daily. The current 180 school buses are powered by CNG, with a select number of gasoline and propane-fueled buses in the fleet. The facility already features six electric school buses and chargers as the district prepares to deploy the technology at scale. The purchase is expected to remove 780,000 tons of
carbon dioxide from the environment and save $10,000 per bus in maintenance and fuel costs annually. Planning and engineering for this project is currently underway, with a request for funding that will be presented to the Los Angeles Unified Board of Education later this year. Construction is expected to begin in late 2024. LAUSD will expedite the process by utilizing in-house transportation and infrastructure specialists dedicated to moving the project to completion, including discussions with the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power to supply the site with additional electrical capacity. Among the programs helping school districts elec- trify school buses is Southern California Edison’s (SCE) Charge Ready Transport program, a $343 million initia- tive to electrify nearly 8,500 medium-and heavy-duty vehicles through no- to low-cost infrastructure. “We have electrified over 200 school buses and have over 100 more that have committed,” said Chanel Parson, direc- tor of building and transportation electrification at SCE. SCE pays for and installs the utility- and customer-side EV charging infrastructure and offers rebates to school districts. At least 40 percent of program dollars are targeted to be spent in state-designated disadvantaged communities. SCE’s transportation electrification advisory services
44 School Transportation News • JUNE 2023
chool bus electrification is moving away from “if” it will occur and closer to when and where. “I have no doubt that the whole world is going to electric vehicles,” commented Ewan Pritchard, an
program conducts site and EV readiness assessments in districts to identify available grant opportunities. Meanwhile, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
provides $5 billion for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Clean School Bus Program to replace existing school buses with clean, zero-emission school buses. Nearly $1 billion of rebate funding was awarded last Oc- tober. The second round of funding, in the form of a $400 million competitive grant, is underway with applications due by Aug. 22. The agency also expects another round of rebate funding opportunities later this year. Meanwhile, in Virginia, Dominion Energy supports the
initiative by offering fast-charging solutions including utility coordination, grid upgrades, construction, and charger installation to schools. Schools pay for charging based on their existing rate schedule, with the exception of charging that occurs after a Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) call, when Dominion Energy replenishes the battery at no charge to the customer within three hours. The current V2G approved bus in Virginia is the
Thomas Built Buses Saf-T-Liner C2 Jouley. Others are being evaluated. Dominion Energy noted electric buses have a range of 120 to 135 miles on a full charge, and in the most optimal operating environment. The com- pany also takes ownership of the battery and uses it for stationary energy storage, supporting the electric distribution grid and giving a bus battery a second life by using it as stationary energy storage.
Importance of Utilities SCE emphasized it is important to engage early with a
utility on an electrification plan, Parson noted. “In some cases, it may take a year or more to install EV infrastruc- ture,” Parson added. “The earlier a school district is thinking about electrifying and engages with their utility, the better, even if they don’t have solid plans in place. Sometimes if we’re engaged too late in the process, it’s hard to be right there ready for the buses when they arrive.” EV infrastructure and construction costs vary greatly
from site to site, explained Tim Farquer, superinten- dent and curriculum director for Illinois’ Williamsfield Schools in western Illinois. He is also the founder of the Bus-2-Grid Initiative, a consortium of other local, rural school districts to ease electrification efforts. “Variables include gaps in current to necessary capacity
as well as how future proof a district is looking to make their facility,” he added. “The number of direct-current fast chargers they are looking to deploy is also a factor.” Energetics’ Pritchard, who moderates an electric school bus panel to start next month’s Green Bus Sum- mit at STN EXPO Reno, added, “These buses are going to be consuming a lot more power than your normal build-
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
